testimonials
I found Michael's silks when I lived in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. I wore them year round, a layer or two in the summer and as many layers as I needed in the winter. I discovered that Michael's clothing allowed me to feel and look beautiful and by looking down at what called my "second skin" I could see that I was beautiful. I started living into that - I became beautiful to myself while I stayed both cool and warm. No matter how many layers I wore, "my silks" never made me feel as if I was wearing thick, heavy clothes. It was such a freeing experience. I fell in love with the silks and have worn them ever since.
Now I live in Hawaii. There is simply no finer fabric and no finer clothing design for Hawaii living. My silks clothes breathe with me, they go right into the washer and dryer and come out like new, they are exquisite to the eye and to the touch. I wear them in and out of the ocean, I wear them hiking, to clean the house, and I work in them. I live in them. I have come to be known for them and thus I've become known for a casual yet elegantly unique style. I am always bathed in rich yet subtle colors that people simply love. I travel for a living and I can get as many silks as I could ever wear on a trip into one suitcase with lots of room left in my bag.
The best surprise of all? These amazing clothes wear like iron. I have pieces that I have worn regularly for the past six years and they all still look like new. I have never thrown out one of these garments because they became worn out. Every piece I own is special. They are each like creatures, expressions of a delicate and powerful archetypal flow that comes through Michael's hands in the most remarkable way. I love them, all of them. I would never consider going without them, they have become my sensible, beautiful, mainstay style of dressing myself. I am 62 years old. Michael's clothes, as they flutter in the breeze and color me like a subtly beautiful business woman or a butterfly fluttering over the ocean's shoreline, make me feel as if I'm twenty-five as I reach into the sensibility and stylish class of a woman turning toward her most important years.
What would I say about Michael's silks? I'd say they are a "just do it!" You won't be sorry.
Cheyenne Maloney
Seminar Director
Na'alehu, Hawaii
www.AssemblagePointShift.com
I LOVE these clothes! I call it 'upscale hippy' and wear them while I'm selling my own paintings at art shows - people tell me 'that's so cool' and although I feel very creative while wearing them, more importantly, I feel comfortable! Comfort is maybe the most important feature - the lightness of the material almost feels as if you aren't wearing much or anything - and in the heat of summer that's particularly wonderful! The silky feel of the material also fuels this feeling of comfort - which probably goes without saying. So in short: feel the silky comfortable-almost-not-there wardrobe and look artsy all at the same time. I simply LOVE these garments!
Ronna Katz
I bought several things from you about 7 years ago and want to praise you for the beauty of your pieces, the excellence in craftsmanship, the durability of your materials, and the graceful loveliness of your creations. I have worn a green pants outfit that I purchased over and over again to summer weddings and on many special occasions. It is so feminine and the colors so vibrant. I just hand wash the garments, but also machine wash them as well. This summer, I purchased a gorgeous cape that I wore over a silk peach colored top and white linen pants. It looked terrific.
So, thank you Michael, for your dedication to creating wearable art that is both beautiful and durable. I truly respect and appreciate what you do.
Gerri, Madison Wisconsin
Just a quick note to let you know how wonderful I feel wearing your Cheyenne chiffon blouse and scarf. I bought these items in Evanston in June where you had a booth at the Fountain Square Art Fair. Despite the wind and lots of people seeking your advice and attention, you took the time to describe your artistic process in creating shibori and to give me personal attention. The fact that you had a changing booth was particularly helpful, since our eyes are sometimes smaller than our bodies. As a “woman of a certain age” (and proud of it), I have to say that many clothing vendors seem to prefer younger clients. You were so gracious, and your clothes make me feel special and beautiful.
I will order again!
Best to you and yours (I like your website!),
Denise Taylor, Evanston Indiana
I bought my first tie-dyed t-shirt in 1975; for the next eighteen years I wore every conceivable design and color combination: spirals, stripes, circles, florals, animals, starbursts, sunbursts, and galaxies...my freak flags flew high and so brightly...
There are dye artists of the highest caliber spread throughout the country, and as I moved from Alabama to Oregon to Tennessee I sampled the wares of many of the finest, drawn to complexity of design, clarity of color, and uncommon imagination...
Around 1991 or -2 I met Michael at his booth in a craft fair in Nashville (TACA, I think), and purchased an amazing shirt that seemed to have streaks of blues and purples woven in and around stripes of black. I couldn't even figure out what color the shirt was in the beginning, let alone how or in what order the colors were added. I finally just decided that magic was somehow involved. Indeed, several years later, while buying my sixth or seventh shirt, Michael offered to explain the process, but I declined, preferring the mystery.
Over the next years I acquired nine of Michael's designs, mostly T-shirts, but at least one oxford-style button-and-collar (worn to my last shirt-and-tie job), and several have, as all cotton must, become worn beyond my ability to repair. However, they live on as hatbands and handkerchiefs, or reside in my "retired t-shirts" box, awaiting the time when I sew a quilt for a future grandchild.
When I wear one of his designs, Michael's artistry and expertise have drawn comment and admiration from all ages and backgrounds. Upon rediscovering his work at April's Merlefest, I'm thrilled to see that his talent has continued to evolve, embracing the silken materials and oriental techniques (shibori) so suitable to his designs; yet I was tickled to find a few t-shirts there on the racks, as bright as the ones folded up in my dresser at home.
Thank You for the years of colorful pleasure, both past and future...
With Love,
Jerry Whitten
Columbia, Tennessee
My closet is FULL of shirts by Michael, and after years of collecting them, it STILL gives me delight just to stare at them! I love the subtle differences in effect as his style changes over the years. I love the stunning differences between any two pieces. I love how alive and expressive I feel when I carefully choose on any given day whether to go with a dense, deep green, or an electrifying purple and gold. And I love how completely unique Michael’s art is – after years and years of wearing them, I still get more comments on these shirts than anything else I have ever worn, and love telling people – “You can get them from his booth, right over there!” or “just go to MichaelSilks.com”. Thanks, Michael, you have singlehandedly raised my wardrobe above the boring and noble.
Zemo Trevathan
Durham, North Carolina
Please send me your experiences with my clothing to be posted on this page, Thanks!
e-mail here: michael@michaelsilks.com
pictures too, if you have any!